Monday, July 15, 2013

Spider Guard Introspective: Michael Langhi - Rolled Up

It's all well and good to learn solely how to defend spider-guard and how to address the hooks, pass et cetera, however, often, the best way to beat your enemy is to know your enemy. It's not enough to just defend. You learn the position and you learn what the opponent needs, and thus look to avoid those scenarios, grips, and or angles he needs. It's one thing to tell you what (s)he needs, it's another to know from time on the mat exactly or at least have a relatively clear idea of what (s)he needs to gain the advantage. So, overcome your fear, and get into the mind of the enemy.

That being said, one of the more prominent proponents of the spider guard in recent years is Michael Langhi who went undefeated for 2 years at the elite level. His guard was dubbed unpassable for quite awhile (though, recently, Leandro Lo did pass it en route to his 2nd consecutive world title after Langhi returned due to a hiatus regarding visa issues.